A supplement to the Farm House Journal, providing updates on the restoration project, technical discussions, and notes on life in an old house.

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Million Dollar Movie

Anyone sentient before the Seventies who grew up within range of an RKO/General television station will undoubtedly remember the Million Dollar Movie. Here in the Los Angeles area, we had it on KHJ-TV Channel 9.

Back then, it was common for the local stations to run movies during prime time, and the Million Dollar Movie was Channel 9's title for their prime-time movie. What made the Million Dollar Movie distinctive was that they played the same movie for a whole week. They also ran that same film every afternoon. This was great if it was a movie you liked, because you had at least twelve chances to see it, a rare opportunity before VCRs or cable movie channels.

So this is my homage to that fine old institution: a movie you can watch as many times as you want!

Yes, it's our media stars Adam and Benny again, back with another epic battle, with the prize this time a prime spot on the couch. Will Adam's increased reach and throw weight carry the day, or will Benny's kitty Krav Maga help him overcome his size disadvantage? Watch and find out!

I can remember precisely tunes I haven't heard in 40 years, but I for some reason have a poor recollection of movies I saw that long ago. The only Million Dollar Movie I can distinctly recall watching repeatedly was The Virginian, the 1929 version with Gary Cooper. I was just starting to learn movie history at the time, and I was fascinated by a film that actually dated back to the Twenties. At that time, 1929 was about 40 years earlier.

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The Farm House Journal:

The big story of the reclamation of one of Pasadena's oldest and most distinctive homes from derelict status, as pictured here. Please click on the picture to read about the unique history of the house and its previous inhabitants, learn about Victorian views upon genteel country living, and follow our adventures as we attempt to carve a homestead out of the rugged Pasadena regulatory forest.